487 



of grain. Tf hare places be noticed in the fields, these must be imme- 

 diately reploughed and resowii with some of the above plants. Attention 

 is also called to the necessity for removing and burning the waste of 

 the maize harvest, in which the caterpillars of Pyrausta niihilalis 

 {Botys silacealis) occur. 



Strachov-Koltchin (A. I.). AiviSapHbiM flOJiroHOCMK"b. [Calandra 

 (/rrtnar/a, L.].— « TpyAbi BopoHewcKOM CiaHuiii no 6opb6t Cb 

 BpeflmeJlflMM paCTeHiM.» [Monoirs of the Voronezh Station for 

 the control of pests of plants], Voronezh,])t. 1, 1915, 74 pp. 25 figs. 



The observations described in this report were made by the author 

 on behalf of the Entomological Station of the Zemstvo of Voronezh, 

 during 1914. Calandra granaria is described and details of its life- 

 history given. The life of the adults is closely related to the tempera- 

 ture surrounding them, and at 27° F. and below it they show no signs 

 of life. At about 52° F. they live and feed nearly normally, but do 

 not pair, this process only beginning at over 54'5° F. At 66-5° F. 

 pairing and oviposition take place daily, one egg being deposited per 

 diem. The eggs are deposited in grains of rye, wheat, maize, barley, 

 oats, buckwheat, shelled millet — although, in the author's experiments, 

 no larvae completed their development inside shelled millet, owing 

 to its small size and the absence of husk causing the larvae to fall 

 out — and also in macaroni, vermicelli and, probably, other preparations 

 of flour. Wet grains are preferred to dry ones, and. other things being 

 equal, rye is preferred to wheat. After the egg has been laid, the 

 opening is closed with an adhesive substance exuded by the female, 

 and placed in position by means of the ovipositor ; this closely 

 resembles the shell and is not easily distinguished even with a lens. 

 Oviposition lasts throughout the summer until the arrival, in autumn, 

 of a temperature of 53°-54° F., but in warm stores and rooms it 

 continues during the whole year. Several tables are given, illustrating 

 the number of eggs laid under various conditions. A female is able to 

 oviposit for three or four months and lives for from one to four weeks 

 afterwards, while the males live two, three and even four months 

 longer than the females. The development of the egg depends mainly 

 on the temperature, excessive dr}Tiess being sometimes harmful, 

 while excessive wetness has no influence, neither has light. A tempera- 

 ture below freezing may lead to the destruction of the egg. The 

 whole life of the larva, as well as of the subsequent stages, is passed 

 inside the grain. At a temperature of 63° F. the larval stage lasted 

 84 days, diminishing to 21|- days at 76|° F. The presence of moisture 

 accelerates the development of the larvae. Even great humidity does 

 not kill them and they are able to live even in wet decomposing, 

 or rotting grain, although a larger percentage of them may become 

 infested with fungus diseases under such conditions. The duration 

 of the pupal stage depends on the temperature, lasting 22 days at 

 60° F., 16 days at 65° F., and 10 days at 71 J° F. Up to a temperature 

 of 75°-77° F., the degree of moisture does not noticeably aft'ect the 

 duration of the pupal stage, but at higher temperatures moisture is 

 essential for the development of the pupa. Having issued from the 

 grain, the weevils feed practically without interruption day and night, 



